Real Estate
How to Select a Real Estate Lawyer in Ontario
Selecting a real estate lawyer for your Ontario purchase, sale or refinance: what closings actually involve, fee quotes to ask for, and when litigation experience matters.
Reviewed by Ayoun Haroon, Partner, Ayoun & Sabeeya LLP
Published March 28, 2025 · Updated August 31, 2026
What your real estate lawyer actually does
Between signing and keys, your lawyer searches and insures title, reviews the status certificate on condominiums, answers requisitions, prepares and registers the transfer and mortgage, calculates Land Transfer Tax and adjustments, moves the money through trust, and reports everything to you and your lender. The work is invisible when done well — and very visible when it is not.
Selection criteria that matter
- Real estate is a core practice with real volume — conveyancing rewards routine
- A flat-fee quote in writing that separates the fee from disbursements and taxes
- Availability before you sign — the cheapest problems to fix are the ones caught in the offer
- Litigation capability for when deals go wrong: deposits, failed closings, title disputes
- Communication you can actually reach on closing week
Our approach
Ayoun Haroon practises both real estate transactions and real estate litigation — the same office that closes your purchase can enforce the agreement if the other side fails to close. Flat fees are quoted up front, closings run across the GTA from our Mississauga office, and the first 15 minutes of any consultation are free.
The content of this website is legal information about Ontario and Canadian law, not legal advice. Reading it, or contacting us through it, does not create a lawyer-client relationship — that begins only after we confirm in writing that the firm is acting for you.